3 days ago
Senate joins anti-scam crusaders
The Senate is stepping up involvement in tackling online crimes, with Senator Nophadol In-na calling for a committee to focus on tackling widespread online crime and call centre scams.
Sen Nophadol said he would raise a motion next Tuesday to set up the panel to boost parliamentary oversight of online crime.
"Despite government action and enforcement of a new Cyber Crime Emergency Decree, scams remain rampant. Thailand is losing 100 million baht a day -- or more than 30 billion baht annually -- to such fraud," he said.
The issue demanded not only stronger law enforcement but also political will.
"Many operators near the border are Thai nationals, and neighbouring countries are using Thai telecom signals to harm Thai citizens," he said.
"This has little to do with political stability. Key ministries are held by the main coalition party, and coordination should be smoother than under past multi-party governments," he said.
"If the government succeeds, it will get the credit. If not, the responsibility lies with them."
Online crime, particularly call centre scams, is often linked to illegal gambling and drug networks. The Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau says losses from online crime between Jan 1 and June 18 totalled 12.77 billion baht, yet only 2% of stolen funds -- about 295 million baht -- were frozen, said the senator.
The proposed committee would be one of four panels up for debate on July 15, following a meeting chaired by Senate Speaker Mongkol Surasajja on July 9.
Other topics include economic sustainability, border security, and disaster response. Each committee would have 90 days to complete a study.
Meanwhile, government spokesman Jirayu Houngsub said on Saturday authorities have intensified their campaign against border-based scam operations.
Efforts include cutting power, internet and fuel to suspected scam hubs along the Thai-Myanmar border, leading to a noticeable decline in criminal activity.
A similar crackdown is underway along the Thai-Cambodian border, he said.
The government also worked on suppressing call centre scams along the Thai-Cambodian border.
He said an arrest warrant against Kok An, suspected leader of a major Cambodian scam network, had been issued. Last week raids on 19 locations in Bangkok, Samut Prakan and Chon Buri believed to be linked to Kok An uncovered luxury cars and over 27 million baht in cash.
